Women's Intuition
by SiriusMarauderFan
Summary: Percy has a rough day when an exploding cauldron turns him and the twins into women. genderbent!AU, possible two-shot.


**Author's Note:** Written for…

Weekly AU Competition. _Prompt:_ Genderbent!AU

Bend That Gender Competition.

**Women's Intuition**

"Fix it."

"Percy, mate, I appreciate your faith in us, but getting-"

"Just turn me back, Fred!"

"I'm George, actu-"

"I don't care, _fix it_."

In the back of Percy's mind, he decided there was probably something wrong with not being able to tell his brothers apart anymore. Although he was too worried about the fact that his brothers had just become his sisters to really care about their feelings right now.

George bit his – _her_ lip and shared a look with Fred.

"There may be some complications."

"Like the fact that we don't have an antidote," Fred said.

Percy glared at them both in turn. "You two called me over here because you said you had some of my things-"

"And we do!" George motioned to the corner, where a small box sat. "Mum wanted us to give it to you since you haven't been around."

Percy thought he sounded bitter about it, but he couldn't afford to let himself dwell on that just yet.

"We thought this was neutral ground," Fred explained. "Since we're not really fond of the Ministry, and we don't know where you live anymore."

Undeterred by the subtle jabs, Percy continued: "And then you douse me in a potion that's turned me into a-a …"

"Girl?" Fred offered.

Percy tightened his hold on his trousers, which had been threatening to slide down his newly-skinny frame for the past ten minutes. He didn't even want to think about the higher pitch of his voice, or the way his previously-short hair now tickled the back of his neck whenever his moved his head.

"It's not like we meant for the cauldron to explode or anything," George grumbled, straightening his tie, even though his robes hung off him. "If it's any consolation though, the potion was only meant to be temporary. If it goes according to plan, it should wear off by twenty-four hours."

"Right, and when's the last time one of your experiments worked perfectly on the first try?"

Neither twin bothered to answer him, and Percy figured he didn't really want to know the answer anyway.

"How long do you think it'll take to make an antidote?"

"We're going to get to work right away," Fred promised, brushing back his long hair in a way that was reminiscent of Ginny. "You can go home and we'll contact you when we're finished."

There was a knock on the door of the flat before Percy had a chance to demand how anyone expected him to go back to the Ministry in his current state.

"We asked Verity for help," George explained, heading to open the door. "We figure we're about her size now."

Percy decided it wasn't very encouraging when the twins' young assistant took one look at the three of them and started laughing her head off.

"Well, you've really done it this time," she said, dropping a dozen hangers draped in women's clothes on the couch. "This should get you through for now, but you'll have to go shopping for, um, undergarments."

Percy paled at the thought. "I don't think that will be necessary."

"Right, of course," she said, though she looked doubtful. "I brought some shoes as well. Just give me a moment."

While Verity was gone, the former-men took the time to select their outfits and take turns changing in the bathroom.

Percy chose a navy pantsuit, which was the only outfit vaguely masculine. Everything else was frilly or floral – and that wasn't even mentioning the _dresses_.

Getting dressed was an adventure in itself, trying to avoid looking at himself in the mirror and ignoring obvious changes to his physique.

The twins didn't seem to have as much trouble, nor mind the feminine clothing. Fred came out in a pink and white polka dot blouse with a knee-length hot pink skirt, and George chose a blue-floral summer dress. Percy shook his head at them as they admired each other's clothes.

"It's no different than robes," George told him with a shrug.

Verity came back with a large back full of shoes which she dumped on the living room floor. The brothers immediately swooped in like pigeons on birdfeed. No one touched anything with a heel, opting for boots and flip-flops and, in Percy's case, a pair of plain black loafers.

"Well, let me know if there's anything else you need," Verity told them, packing up the leftover shoes.

"We'll let you know when we figure something out," Fred told Percy when it was just the three of them.

Percy apparated home, then stood around his flat for a few moments, wondering what to do with himself. He really wanted to take a long, hot shower but that would involve being naked and he wasn't sure he was ready for that.

He wound up in his bedroom, pulling random articles of clothing from his wardrobe and transfiguring them – pulling them in at the waist and letting them out … elsewhere. He wanted to be more optimistic and believe that his brothers would have everything sorted out before the alterations would become necessary, but Percy's faith in the twins' capabilities had long ago been ruined.

It was still early in the afternoon, and a weekend. Not that he would have dared step foot in the Ministry looking as he did. He would have sooner died than let anyone he knew witness the ultimate humiliation of his life. Still, he needed to get out of the house.

Percy wasn't really sure what possessed him to go to the mall. He'd never been to a muggle store in his life, and he didn't have muggle currency. He just wondered around aimlessly until he found a women's clothing store.

He looked through racks of trousers and crisp white blouses before a petite blonde saleswoman came over.

"Is there something I can help you with, Miss?" she asked, and it took Percy a second to realize she was talking to him.

"Um, no, I don't think so."

"Well, let me know if you change your mind. I'm Audrey."

"Percy," he introduced, shaking her hand. She was quite pretty, he realized.

"That's an unusual name."

He backtracked. "It's, uh, short for Persephone." A decent cover-up.

There was a loud crash right outside the shop followed by panicked screams. Percy was close enough to the entrance to see the hooded and masked attackers through the shop window.

"Death Eaters," he muttered, instinctively reaching into his pocket for his wand.

"What?" Audrey asked, looking between Percy and the hoard of criminals. "Who are they?"

"Bad guys," Percy told her simply. He dragged her to the back of the shop – which took a lot more strength that he expected, given his smaller stature. "Stay here. I'll be back in a minute."

He ran into the open and started firing curses and hexes at any Death Eater he laid eyes on. Male or female, he wasn't going to let this be another tragic Daily Prophet headline.

He managed to take out six men on his own and thought he might have injured a couple more, only sustaining a gash to his upper arm. The Aurors came in and swiftly took over the scene, barricading everyone inside until the obliviators arrived. Percy headed back into the clothing store before anyone saw him.

"What was all that?" Audrey demanded the moment he returned. She was knelt down in front of the blown-out shop window. "How did you stop them with a stick?"

Percy wondered if he should leave her to the obliviators when his stomach clenched and he thought he was going to be sick. He fell to his knees and the saleswoman rushed to his side, keeping him from falling face-first into the pile of broken glass.

He closed his eyes against the bright fluorescent light that was suddenly too much for him. Every muscle ached and his head pounded just from Audrey asking if he was alright. He couldn't even speak.

In a flash it was all over and he found himself gasping for air as his lungs started working and his stomach unclenched. He opened his eyes and found Audrey staring wide-eyed at him.

"It's alright, I'm o-" he stopped at the sound of his voice. He almost gotten used to the soft, feminine one he'd had for the past few hours, and now he found it gone.

Quickly, he picked himself up and hurried to one of the store mirrors.

"I'm back!" he said excitedly, running a hand through his once-again short hair. He decided he didn't look any different from how he had that morning, except for the wound on his arm and the too-small pantsuit he still wore.

"Is this normal, then?" Percy turned to find Audrey watching him curiously, without a hint of fear.

"I-I wouldn't say normal, no," he answered quietly, somewhat shy now that he was back to his old self. She was very pretty, after all, and he was years out of practice.

"So I don't suppose you'd be willing to explain what those lunatics were doing out there, or why you're looking much more … manly than you did a few minutes ago?" She was smiling at him, and he could see a few wizards heading their way, and he was going to be in _so much_ _trouble_…

"Take my hand," he told her urgently. "And don't let go until I say it's okay."

It was a test, really. A stupid, careless, impulsive decision that he'd expect of the twins, or maybe Charlie. If she took his hand, then she trusted him. Maybe that trust would be enough for her to accept everything he had to tell her as the truth.

She didn't even hesitate in gripping his hand tightly. He turned on the spot, taking them both to the safety of his flat.


End file.
